Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Great Cake Decorating Technique

I’ve decided to share with you something fun, easy, and you
can be as glamorous or as simple with it as you would like. I’m talking about cake
decorating!

My all-time favourite decorating technique is using Moulding Paste. It is a form of fondant,
or Plastic Icing, however this is not an icing to be spread over the entire
cake. Moulding Paste is a hard-setting decoration paste that sets into any
shape you make. You know those adorable bride and groom figurines on the top of
wedding cakes? Moulding paste. Or those amazingly gorgeous bows and flowers that
look so real you’re afraid to cut it? Moulding paste. It’s edible, easy to use,
and has the texture of plasticine. You can buy it at any good cake decorating
store and the price, compared to buying individual flowers and cake
decorations, is very affordable.

Once you have iced your cake, whether with frosting,
ganache, or fondant, the fun part begins -- The decorating!

But how?? I have three examples to show you.Example no. 1:

I made this cute little guy for my niece’s 1st birthday party. It was my first attempt using this technique. You can read all about it here, but for now I’ll give you the cliff’s notes version J

To create this effect I free-hand copied an image of Jess the Cat, including all of his facial features and made it large enough to fit on the tin. This became my template. I cut around the outside line of the cat and rolled out the moulding paste (black colour), set the template on top of it, and proceeded to trace and cut it out using an arrow-head cutting tool, but you can also use a sharp knife. I then rolled out the next required colour (white) and using the same paper cut-out, traced and cut the fluffy ‘mane’, followed by the green eyes, then white mouth. I added the back eyeball cut-outs, etc, and stuck them all on using egg white and a paint brush one piece at a time until the face came together. The process was very quick and simple, even I was surprised! The whiskers are just wire coloured with permanent marker, which were the best items to use to get the perfect straight stick look (liquorice did not work! ;) So simple, soooo cute. This technique can also be used with fondant for larger templates like this cat, but a firming agent powder may be required to assist in it not being too ‘floppy’. Also, you can use your own smaller templates to stand up on a cake after they have set hard, (as shown in example 3 below).

Example no. 2:

I made this four-tier cake for an engagement party. It was a
huge project, but the individual components of it were actually very simple. It
is a perfect example of simple WOW techniques that anyone can do:

1)Cookie Cut-Outs. By rolling out moulding paste
and using your run-of-the-mill cookie cutter, you can create a great looking
cake. The third tier on this cake is just plain round circles, but it really
makes the tier pop. Likewise when using stars, flowers, or any choice of shape,
it’s just a matter of roll, cut, and place. I like to use a (new) small
paintbrush and egg-white as my sticking agent. Just a dot on the back is all
you need. It’s clear and will make anything stick perfectly. You don’t even
have to wait for the paste to set.

2)Flowers. There are endless varieties of sugar
flowers on the market ranging from 40c all the way up to bouquets selling for
$35.00+ but why not have a go yourself using flower cutters? There are small flower
cutters especially for cake decorating, and all you have to do is roll, cut and
place. If you want to give the effect I used on this cake, you can use your
finger or a flower moulding ball tool to shape the petals to look a little more
realistic. Then, just add a small ball of coloured paste in the middle and you
have a perfect little flower that cost you nowhere near 40c to make!

3)Wire. I kid you not, cake decorating shops will
charge you up to $2.20 for ONE piece of wire with a love-heart or a star stuck
on the end of it. Why pay that when you can make it yourself, and as many as
you would like? As with the other techniques, simply roll and cut, but then cut
your wire down to size (allow for extra length to stick it into the cake) gently
push it into the end of your shape, and wait for it to dry. And keep in mind
you can also use letters, numbers, or even balloons, like in the pic down
below! It looks great, and makes a real impact for any event!

Example no. 3:

Cutting, drying and then sticking-in are easy ways to make
numbers or letters of any shape or size. Just be sure to cut the bottom of your
template extra-long (around 2cm or so) to allow for you to push the decoration
into the cake to make it stand. For larger pieces, inserting wire may be
required for added strength. I recommend using a sharp knife to create a slit
in the cake in which to push the decoration for easy insertion.

I know that looking at a picture of a completed cake can look
overwhelming, tricky, and time consuming, but I assure you these techniques are
simple and definitely worth a try. When a friend of mine showed me how to put
fondant on a cake for the first time, it was all I needed
to let my imagination run wild with new ideas. You too might just find a hidden
talent or even just a fun hobby with a pack of moulding paste!

Good luck with your future cake endeavours, and if you have
any questions please don’t hesitate to leave a message on my blog. Happy
decorating! J

5 comments:

Rani, these cakes are fabulous! I always made special cakes for our children when they were little, using soft icing, but this would have worked so much better. I am going to be using these ideas, thank you! :)xo

W.O.W.Oh my goodness! The world of possibilities! I keep running through how I could maybe do something like that and how amazing it would be if I could be that talented and create cakes like that. ...but then I also keep coming back to the idea of "Maybe I can just get Rani to do it". Lol, joking. But like I said, Wow!

Thanks for all the tips and advice. I will DEFINITELY be keeping these things in mind and coming back in the future to look again. I'll also be keeping my eye out for some moulding paste to maybe try :)